Our Net-Zero Northwest (NZNW) analysis continues to reverberate widely across the region and beyond as more people have had time to absorb its multifaceted results and conclusions. In addition to responding to multiple requests for briefings as described below, the Clean Energy Transition Institute’s attention now turns to the policies and actions required to put the region on the path to a net-zero future by 2030.
The NZNW study tells us directionally the pathways that might achieve a net-zero emissions future for our region, but the devil is very much in the details for how we might get there. We’ve invested resources at the Institute since 2021 into mapping how to scale building decarbonization. Now we are focused on what must happen between now and 2030 to ensure that all the pieces are in place to execute a massive effort to electrify as many buildings as possible by 2050. That’s where SCALE 2030 comes in. Read Poppy Storm's blog to learn what must happen for Washington state to meet its building decarbonization and overall economy-wide decarbonization targets.
The Northwest region will have to develop a significant amount of renewable energy and expand transmission if it is to achieve a net-zero emissions target by 2050. In order to develop this new energy and not replicate inequitable siting of energy projects that harmed communities in the past, clean energy developers and state regulators can adopt various frameworks for justice and best practices, as Kate MacArthur explains. This blog marks the end of Kate's summer internship, and we are grateful for her time with us.
One of the key findings of the NZNW analysis is that our region has the potential to lead the nation in developing clean fuels and that hydrogen and hydrogen-derived fuels could play a major role.
Research Analyst Ruby Moore-Bloom wrote about a new infographic we created to unpack various clean fuels pathways that stem from green electrolytic hydrogen for industrial and transportation uses. You can download this useful infographic and wow your friends with all the ways that green hydrogen can be used to produce clean fuels.
The CETI team has been quite busy sharing the results of the NZNW study locally and nationally since our first public briefing on July 17 (pictured above). The CleanTech Alliance had the first slot on our dance card, the day after we released the study and Stoel Rives was the first law firm to request a briefing.
So far in August we have briefed the Yale Carbon Containment Lab; researchers and graduate students in the University of Washington’s Program on Climate Change; the West Coast BlueGreen Alliance team; and a cross-section of Microsoft employees who are engaged in achieving the company’s ambitious carbon emissions goals.
Earlier this month, North Atlantic Books published Climate Resilience: How We Keep Each Other Safe, Care for Our Communities, and Fight Back Against Climate Change by climate justice and resilience strategist Kylie Flanagan. I am humbled to be one of the 39 inspiring climate leaders that Kylie spoke to as she wrote this “intersectional primer for saving the planet: place-based perspectives and community-led tools for fighting climate change.”
Thank you very much to everyone who has engaged with our Net-Zero Northwest study so far. We recently found two errors that we corrected in the Clean Fuels results (Clean Fuels PDF Figure 1 and Figure 4 and the Energy Key Findings PDF as Figure 6 and Figure 7). The revised versions are now updated on our website.
We are looking for a Communications and Development Manager to oversee our website, blogs, social media, publications, marketing, and funder materials. Our ideal candidate is a strong and creative writer capable of translating complex technical analyses into crisp, clear communications and committed to a rapid and equitable clean energy transition in the Northwest. Please share widely with your networks.
As always, a lot going on here at CETI! Thank you very much for your support for our work.